Electronic Arts shares rose Wednesday after the video game publisher beat Wall Street's targets for its fiscal first quarter. EA stock climbed despite the company's conservative guidance.
The Redwood City, Calif.-based company late Tuesday said it earned an adjusted 47 cents a share on net bookings of $1.3 billion in the quarter ended June 30. Analysts polled by FactSet expected EA earnings of 33 cents a share on sales of $1.26 billion. In the year-earlier period, EA earned an adjusted 81 cents a share on net bookings of $1.34 billion.
For the current quarter, EA forecast adjusted earnings of $1.30 a share on net bookings of $1.75 billion. That's based on the midpoint of its outlook. Wall Street was modeling earnings of $1.46 a share on sales of $1.84 billion in EA's fiscal second quarter ending Sept. 30.
For the full year ending March 31, EA now expects to earn an adjusted $7.10 a share on net bookings of $8 billion. Analysts had been looking for earnings of $7.17 a share on sales of $7.98 billion in EA's fiscal 2023.
EA Stock Climbs Following Report
On the stock market today, EA stock jumped 3.4% to close at 133.28. During the regular session Tuesday, EA stock fell 1.5% to close at 128.89.
"Our FIFA franchise and the successful launch of F1 drove our net bookings outperformance, delivering another quarter ahead of expectations," Chief Financial Officer Chris Suh said in a news release. "Looking ahead, our focus on execution and disciplined investment across our broad portfolio of games and live services will fuel our long-term growth."
EA Stock Ranks First In Industry Group
Late Monday, industry peer Activision Blizzard reported mixed second-quarter results. It earned an adjusted 47 cents a share on net bookings of $1.64 billion in the June quarter. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected earnings of 48 cents a share on sales of $1.57 billion. In the year-earlier period, Activision earned an adjusted 91 cents a share on net bookings of $1.92 billion.
Microsoft is in the process of buying Activision for $68.7 billion in cash.
EA stock ranks first out of 21 stocks in IBD's Computer Software-Gaming industry group, according to IBD Stock Checkup. It has an IBD Composite Rating of 83 out of 99. The Composite Rating scores a stock's key growth metrics against all other stocks regardless of industry group.
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